Simcoe-Muskoka is one of the 24 regions allowed to enter Stage 2 of the province’s re-opening phase on Friday at 12:01 a.m.
As of June 8, the Simcoe-Muskoka region has a total of 498 COVID-19 cases, with 418 (84 percent) of them recovered.
Stage 2 will allow for the opening of many businesses including personal care services like beauty salons and tattoo parlours, restaurant patios, shopping malls, beaches, splash pads, pools and more.
Across the province, social gatherings will increase from the current five people to 10, with social distancing practices of six feet a part if not from the same household, still in play.
Church services will also be allowed to resume at 30 percent capacity.
For Bradford, there are many business owners who have been waiting for this day, after months of being shut down, many are ready to get back to work, but it won’t be business as usual when their doors reopen on Friday.
The openings will come with new social distancing rules and safety measures in place in order to keep both clients and employees protected and safe.
Since Bradford borders along York Region, who have not been permitted to move onto Stage 2 of re-opening, some residents are concerned that there will be an influx of visitors from Newmarket and surrounding areas.
“I am not sure how well this is going to work with York Region so close and not opening,” said Bradford resident Joanne Guay. “I think traffic in town will be crazy once this happens with so many out-of-town folks wanting to use our services."
She noted that while it is great for businesses to be able to get more clients, she hopes the number of out-of-towners don’t bring an influx of COVID-19 to Bradford.
“I suspect there may be some problems, but really hoping I'm wrong,” she said.
Bradford mother Katie Cutrone is also concerned about out-of-town visitors.
“I get it..businesses in lower case areas should be allowed to open,” she reasoned. “But because Bradford is literally the border or York region, I feel like the Schomberg and Newmarket areas are just going to come north,” she said.
She would like to visit a splash pad with her three-year-old and three-month-old, but says it’s just too risky, especially since her three-year-old has asthma.
“We will not be going to splash pads etc. for the foreseeable future. I won't trust others,” she said.
And even though the town has the go-ahead to open some of its facilities, they are not in any rush to do so and won't be opening on Friday.
"It’s going to be quite a process to figure out how to safely do so, and in every case, there will need to be new protocols, signage, etc.," noted the town's community relations officer Caleigh Clubine.
The town is hoping to make an announcement regarding the openings by the end of the week.
Deputy Mayor James Leduc doesn’t think the town will have any issues with visitors coming to Bradford.
“They (GTA residents) can still get the services in their own areas by providing curbside pickup or contactless delivery,” he said. “If they chose to come to Bradford for a dining out experience then there is a limit as to the number of people allowed in one area.”
He says the business community is ready to open and will maintain social distancing protocols.
“I hope they (businesses) have a successful opening, people need to get back to work to have normalcy in their lives. Good Luck to all of them.”
"It has been a long time that we have had the emergency orders, and it is good to see some relaxing of the controls," said Mayor Rob Keffer.
"Although there is some concern over the spread of Covid-19, I believe our business community will have the proper procedures and protocols in place to open safely. Many of these businesses will have services by appointment or reservation only which will give them control," he said.
“We must do it right so that we don’t create a subsequent wave," said Coun. Gary Baynes, and Chair of the Downtown Revitalization Committee.
"We need to make sure that pertinent details are figured out ahead of something being reopened," he said. "We are working hard to get BWG businesses back on track.”
Bradford resident Katrina Foster says she is looking forward to Stage 2 in Bradford.
"I am happy about the patios so we can at least enjoy something this summer," she said.
Some businesses have already alerted customers on social media when they plan to open and what policies will be in place.
In an article published last month in BradfordToday, local beauty salons BBBeauty Boutique and Victoria Bourqe noted their new protocols would include things like face masks and shields, pre-scheduled appointments, Plexiglass walls at checkout, hand sanitizers and temperature checks for clients.
Some nail salons in town like DKM Nails and Nails for Party are also requiring pre-booked appointments.
St. Louis Bar & Grill noted that they are preparing for their re-opening and will provide an update on their Facebook page one details have been finalized.
MexiCanada in the downtown core says they are happy to open their patio on Friday, and are already fully booked for their 7 p.m. seating. They have new policies in place to make sure customers feel safe, including spaced out seating with a maximum of six people per table.
Guy Abergel who owns Art Studio Tattoos in the downtown core is still waiting on the Ministry for guidelines to opening, and will be posting details on the reopening on his Facebook page soon. He said he has about three-four months worth of clients to re-book and will be very busy, but is happy to be back to work.
